Nongovernmental organisation (NGO) Greenpeace Africa on Wednesday morning held a protest outside the Department of Energy (DoE), urging the government to abandon nuclear energy plans, and ramp up the deployment of renewable energies.

Greenpeace handed over a petition calling on the government to publicly respond to its concerns on the social and economic risks of nuclear power.

About six weeks ago, the NGO presented its nuclear energy report to Energy Minister Dipuo Peters, which the organisation stated outlined the true cost of nuclear power as opposed to renewable energy sources. The Greenpeace report highlighted concerns with South Africa’s insistence on relying on nuclear technology that would lock the country into what it called an “expensive and outdated” energy future.

Minister Peters has not yet responded to Greenpeace. However, last week, she announced that a proposal on new nuclear would be presented to Cabinet soon, indicating that concerns on nuclear safety have been addressed.

“Fukushima forced governments around the globe to reassess their nuclear plans and the impact of nuclear energy plants on their people and their environment,” said Greenpeace Africa’s Ferrial Adam.

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The artwork in the header, titled "JAPAN:Nuclear Power Plant," is copyright artist Tomiyama Taeko.

The photograph in the sidebar, of a nuclear power plant in Byron, Illinois, is copyright photographer Joseph Pobereskin (http://pobereskin.com/)

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